From the onset of the California Gold Rush in 1849, every gold miner felt the need to carry a knife. At first, no cutlers could be found in San Francisco; well made bowie knives or dirks could only be ordered from Sheffield or back East, and it was usually 6 months before delivery by clipper ship. By 1852, however, San Francisco had transformed from a rough frontier town to a wealthy, bustling seaport, and the prosperous gentlemen of "The City" did not consider themselves properly dressed for dinner until they had added a beautifully made knife to their attire. The demand gave rise to San Francisco's first custom knife makers, including such legendary names as Will & Finck and Michael Price, and they, as well as the Sheffield and Eastern cutlers, rushed to satisfy the refined tastes of these newly affluent denizens of the “Barbary Coast”. They created a new class of dress knives in what came to be known as the "California style". Bowie knives of all makes and styles continue to be highly prized and heavily used by those “49ers”, soldiers on both sides in the Civil War, westering men in the early postbellum Old West, and all the way through the turn of the 20th century. Beautifully made antique bowie knives have been of great interest to collectors for decades, leading Bill Adams to write an authoritative reference book on the subject in 1990, limited to 1100 numbered copies, and remaining out of print and highly sought after today. This “The Antique Bowie Knife Book” Sheffield Makers, Will & Finck, Michael Price Reference Work is in Very Good Condition, with the top left inner corner of the front dust jacket (residing inside the front cover) having been cut away long ago, likely to obfuscate the original price of the book, some light wrinkling and edge nicking to the spine and corners of the dust jacket, and with some light overall age wear evident. Otherwise, the book is in fine shape, with no other damage. Most interestingly, it’s numbered “602” (of 1100) on the 1990 copyright page, boasts an elegantly illustrated dust jacket over hardcovers, and sports 552 pages full of descriptive text, period pictures, and color photographs of incredible antique Sheffield made bowie knives from a wide variety of makers, classic American bowies from N.P. Ames, stunning “California” knives by Will & Finck and Michael Price, and a huge number of other beautiful bowies. A fine example of a very rare, original “The Antique Bowie Knife Book” Sheffield Makers, Will & Finck, Michael Price Reference Work.